Edwin van der Sar has opened up about his “ambition” during his time at Manchester United after Sir Alex Ferguson brought him to Old Trafford.
The 55-year-old Manchester United legend had been at Premier League side Fulham when the Red Devils landed him from an undisclosed transfer fee in 2005.
Sir Alex Ferguson had been on the hunt for a new No 1 after Roy Carroll left the Red Devils amid Man Utd’s woes of replacing Peter Schmeichel’s influence at the time.
Edwin van der Sar stepped up in a major way for iconic former United manager Ferguson and helped fill the void left behind by Peter Schmeichel’s 1999 exit.
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Edwin van der Sar’s ‘main target’ was his complete focus at Man Utd under Sir Alex Ferguson
Edwin van der Sar initially signed a two-year deal with Manchester United in 2005 and the Dutchman went on to lift four Premier League titles with the club.
The former Man Utd No 1’s silverware haul at Old Trafford also included a Champions League trophy and two League Cups before he retired in 2011.
Van der Sar admitted that he ended up playing longer than he expected under Sir Alex Ferguson after his intention was to return to the Netherlands in his career.
“That was my main target [to win the league],” he told Ben Foster on the Fozcast podcast.
“Because let’s say I was a little bit older when I came to United 34. The ambition was [that] I signed a two-year deal and hope whatever, maybe I can win one league title and then I will go back to Holland.
“Career done and dusted.”
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Van der Sar kept 131 clean sheets in 266 matches for Man Utd across all competitions after his six-season spell at the Premier League club.
The former Netherlands international admitted that his run at the Red Devils defied all ‘expectations’ after remaining at Old Trafford long after his initial 2005 deal.
“But yeah, it over exceeded [my] expectation,” he said.
“And having that record is nice.”
Van der Sar is widely regarded as one of the best shot-stoppers in Man Utd’s history alongside fellow Red Devils legends Peter Schmeichel and David de Gea.
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